


Dreams

by Thousand_Springs



Category: Sweet Elite (Visual Novel)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-25
Updated: 2020-07-25
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:22:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,525
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25503589
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Thousand_Springs/pseuds/Thousand_Springs
Summary: Ever since she was little, Karolina had been dreaming about the feeling of warm and laughter.
Relationships: Karolina Nováková/Scholar
Kudos: 9





	Dreams

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Echoe](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Echoe/gifts).



> This was written for a prompt about "100 ways to say I love you". The prompt was "I dreamt about you last night". 
> 
> Delivered very, very late after some cryptic questions as well, but I hope this can make up for it! This is for you, OJ!

Ever since she was little, Karolina had been dreaming about the feeling of warm and laughter.

It didn’t happen every night, but it was often enough that she couldn’t dismiss it as some nonsense conjured by her mind. And she wasn’t foolish, as soon as the concept of souls linked to each other was introduced to her, she knew that was exactly what those dreams were.

Sometimes it was just the impression of laughter that rang in her ears even after she had already waked up. Sometimes it was a warm feeling in her face, in her hands, in her chest. Sometimes it was a flash of golden, daylight, she used to think to herself, or maybe something else entirely. Sometimes it was the overwhelming feeling of longing. After those nights she always laid in bed for longer than usual, looking at the ceiling while her heart refused to go at its normal pace.

Frustratingly enough, the dreams didn’t seem to wish to show her anything clearer, and so she was left with only impressions to get by for years.

When she got to Arlington Academy with her brother, there had been already enough hardships in her life to shape her to be the way she was. The little girl that daydreamed about finding someone made just for her wasn’t gone, not really, but she had grown; she couldn’t stay idle and fantasize about things that just _could_ happen when reality stared at her directly in the face. She wouldn’t let herself fall behind; she would stare back at life and lift her chin in defiance.

When she fell for Tadashi Nakano, it wasn’t anything out of a romance novel. It wasn’t an earth-shattering realization, nor it did feel like a piece of a puzzle had been finally put in its right place. No, it wasn’t perfect, it wasn’t even _meant to be_ , but she didn’t care. So she smiled, she flirted, she comforted and she offered companionship and friendship.

She knew, it was obvious that he was not even remotely close to what her soulmate would be, but he seemed almost perfect to her eyes. As long as the mysterious stranger in her dreams didn’t appear, there was nothing wrong with entertaining these daydreams.

At the same time, the dreams grew a little bolder, as if to remind her that they were in fact still there. The laughter now came accompanied by a melodious voice that always said ephemeral words to her. The warm started feeling little by little more like someone holding her hand, like someone caressing her face, like her heart giving a somersault in her chest. The flash of golden looked like hair, framing a face that she could never remember upon waking up. The feeling of longing started to feel more like anticipation.

But she went on with her life. She lived and she made and she laughed and smiled and scowled and hurt.

Summer became autumn, winter spring and soon enough, a new year at Arlington started.

And with the new school year, _she_ came along.

“I’m Heather”, she had said, with a big smile and eager eyes.

She didn’t seem like much at first, but she wasn’t bad either. She helped Neha and her redecorate their room with minimal complain. As brief as their first meeting went, she couldn’t help but feel relieved that the new girl had accepted to spend her afternoon with them. It wasn’t a spectacularly entertaining activity and it was troubling how much she had enjoyed herself despite that.

That night, the first clear dream of her soulmate came.

Heather was there, with that golden hair of hers shining in the sun and the cheekiest smile she had seen from her so far. “ _I knew I would find you here”,_ said the girl, taking one of her hands in her own and using the other to lightly caress her cheek, _“You look beautiful”._

She sat up suddenly; awake as if someone had said those words loudly in her ears, she panted for breath, with her eyes wide in disbelief. She could feel her face flushed and she put it in her hands. It was early, there were probably a few hours left before the early birds started their day. She couldn’t fall back asleep.

When the newbie tried to sneak her way into class, obviously late by that point, Karolina didn’t say anything, she just glared at her, the dark circles behind her eyes covered by make up. Later, when she blushed at Tadashi’s reprimand and she felt the girl’s eyes on her, she felt strangely guilty. She knew why. And she hated Heather a little.

It didn’t get better from there. Slightly snippy comments escalated into an argument and had she not fainted at Raquel’s party, she wasn’t sure she wouldn’t have done something extreme just so the girl would get away from her.

Sometimes, however, Heather catched her off guard and she could feel her own reluctance melt a little. She always managed to pull herself together on time, before doing something foolish, but it felt like an empty victory.

 _“I’ll wait for you”_ , whispered a voice at night _._ The dreams kept tormenting her.

One day, while she said hi to Tadashi and smiled to him, she realized that the feelings she had towards him were no longer what they were before. She no longer felt her heart beating faster when she saw him. It felt more like smiling to Neha, and the “darling” she always had kept reserved just for him didn’t seem to want to roll off her tongue.

She didn’t glare at Heather like the second day of school, but she did stare at her. Contemplating, calculating. When the girl catched her eye, Karolina waited just a second too long to look elsewhere.

Heather started becoming a constant in her life. Sometimes at lunch, sometimes in the hallways or the garden or at class.

“ _I’m not going away”_ , said the voice in her dreams. It sounded solemn, like a vow. “ _I’m here. It’s safe to stay”._

She couldn’t even pretend to dislike the girl’s company anymore. She could admit, if only to herself, that she looked forward to their own personal banter each time they met. She didn’t hold back her smiles as much anymore.

Sometimes they spent the afternoon together and they only separated when they reached their respective rooms in the dorms.

One of those times, Karolina asked Heather if she would like to come into her room. The girl seemed surprised, but delighted nonetheless. Karolina told herself that the beaming smile she received for her proposal didn’t make her feel like she was five years old again, daydreaming about the day she would meet that mysterious person that lived in her dreams, like her own personal haven.

The air felt like anticipation, like the silence before music starts playing.

And Karolina felt bold in a way that she wasn’t used to. It wasn’t the boldness she used for her career, but it wasn’t the boldness she usually had when interacting either. When she looked back at Heather, she didn’t feel like she was looking at someone that could put her aspirations and hopes at risk.

They sat in her bed and they talked. Karolina wasn’t sure how much time had happened when the other girl laughed, loud and sincere. It sounded like the melodious laughter of her dreams.

“What? Is there something in my face?” Heather asked after the witty comment she probably expected had delayed for a little too long. She sounded a little breathless, looking at her with eyes full of wonder.

And Karolina?

She let go.

Her hand fit in the nape of Heather’s neck as if it had always belonged there. The little gasp against her own lips sounded like promises. And the warm against her body when the other starting kissing her softly felt like hope.

“ **I dreamt about you last night** ”, Karolina confessed after the kiss, placing her forehead against Heather’s. She opened her eyes. She was sure she was looking at the girl reverently, because the other was in turn looking at her like that. “I’ve been dreaming about you for years”.

“I know”, the words were said sheepishly, but the happiness in them was undeniable. “I’ve been dreaming about you as well”.

“I don’t think we need those dreams anymore,” she continued, before placing a kiss in her nose.

“Oh?”

“I have you now,” she said. It might have been presumptuous from her to say something like that, but she knew it was the truth. “And you have me”.

When Heather put her hand in her cheek to kiss her again, it didn’t feel like she had fulfilled all her dreams, no. It didn’t feel like she was finally in the right track either, because she knew she had never truly been in the wrong one.

It felt as if every time she looked ahead from now on, towards every goal and dream left to accomplish, there would be someone beside her, warm, caring, _right._ It was a promise.

And, in this case, it was enough for her. 

**Author's Note:**

> And then Neha came into the room and the soft moment broke. The end.
> 
> Heather is an scholar OC that I made up a few days ago for a very specific reason. Later today, the reason should be clear enough though. You know what you did, OJ.


End file.
